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Oregon Road Conditions & Cams Email Story to a Friend August 7, 2005 ‘Stooges’ act gets teen fine, sentence Families dispute events between Gold Hill boys By SANNE SPECHT Mail Tribune GOLD HILL — A Gold Hill boy ended up with a juvenile court record after engaging in what he said was a simple display of youthful horseplay. David Thumler, 15, said pinching and twisting the nipple of 13-year-old Matthew Cox cost him a trip to juvenile court July 20, where he was sentenced to three days of community service, a $67 fine and a misdemeanor record for harassment. "I was messing around with someone I thought I knew," David said. "But I guess I should have known him better." That’s exactly right, said Ken Chapman, a Jackson County juvenile probation supervisor. Chapman said bullying is often involved in harassment cases. Declining to discuss the particulars of David’s case, Chapman said ORS 166.065 defines physical harassment as "offensive physical touching." That includes such adolescent assaults as "wet-willies," "wedgies," "swirlies," "noogies," David’s "titty-twister" — and all other forms of adolescent "Three Stooges" behavior, Chapman said. Advertisement "Offensiveness is going to be judged by the person" on the receiving end, he said. David said he and Matthew were in line at a local deli when Matthew jokingly made an embarrassing remark to the female clerk about David. So David counterattacked with the "titty-twister," which Matthew said came unprovoked. "It’s a thing of camaraderie," David said. "If he’s going to assume our friendship is on that level, then so am I." What David said was a typical teen reaction was actually a painful and humiliating assault from an older, bigger bully, said Matthew’s mother, Bobby Cox. "They’re not friends," she said. "If (David) was my son’s friend, it would be a different thing." But even Cox didn’t realize her husband’s call to Gold Hill police would result in court time, she said. Chief Dean Muchow came to her house, she said. "Nobody informed me it would be a full-blown trial," she said. David’s mom, Christine Alford, said she refused to allow her son to attend an informal "intake hearing" at juvenile court after seeing a photo of a youth in handcuffs on the county’s juvenile court Web site. "I thought that image was rather intimidating," Alford said. David was facing a maximum penalty of two days in juvenile detention, three days of community service, one year of probation and a $67 fine for his Class B misdemeanor. Alford hired Michael Kellington, a criminal defense and personal injury attorney in Medford. "They call this ‘baby assault’," Kellington said. Kellington said Judge Patricia Crain sentenced David to the fine and community service on July 20. Because of the nature of the misdemeanor offense, David can request to have his record expunged when he’s 18, said Kellington, who added the whole thing went too far. "This whole thing seems so Orwellian," he said. Chapman said most cases like this don’t end up in court. "They filter themselves out," he said. "Most kids don’t report." Alford’s refusal to let David go to the intake hearing upped the ante and brought down "unfair, Draconian measures" upon her son, Kellington said. What should have been a discussion between first-time-offender David and a representative of the juvenile justice system became a court trial. "The mom is understandably fearful," said Kellington. "You shouldn’t retaliate for the decision of a parent upon the child. It’s like they’re saying, ‘We’re bigger than you, you’d better not exercise your rights.’" But Chapman said Alford should have brought her son in for the informal hearing. " ‘Intake hearing’ doesn’t mean ‘taking into custody,’ " said Chapman. "When we take someone into custody, we don’t make appointments. If there’s a consequence for not coming in informally, well, that’s one they chose." Reach reporter Sanne Specht at 776-4497 or e-mail �Stooges� act gets teen fine, sentence ">[email protected] . Mail Tribune Home | Local News | Sports | Business | Obituaries | Life | Opinion AP News | Archives | Site Map | Community | Classified Copyright © 1997-2005 Mail Tribune, Inc. All rights reserved. Privacy Policy | Terms & Conditions | Website Feedback Ready-Made Website Templates Free Music Downloads Conference Calls - $50/Month Home Security Systems Trunks, Footlocker, Trunk, Footlockers dvd-r helzberg diamonds Distance Education Diamonds Online Poker Computer Security Home Equity Loans Website Hosting Slippers Student Loans tcg student loan consolidation Canadian Pharmacy Memory Foam Mattress w2 forms Mortgage Calculator Free Home-Loan Referrals Online Casino News Air Purifiers Hotel/Motel Reservations Advertisement s